Flags line Route 25 on North Fork

This weekend, drivers along Main Road on the North Fork will see more than 2,000 American flags along the route in honor of Independence Day.

The flags, installed by Kate Carpluk, a real estate agent from the Mattituck office of Town & Country Real Estate, will line the road, also known as Route 25, along a 4-mile stretch from Route 105 in Aquebogue to the community of Laurel.

“I’m very grateful for our independence,” said Carpluk, who has been planting the flags for more than 10 years. “It’s out of respect and to honor our armed forces,” both veterans and those now in service.

Riverhead resident Rebecca Trojanowski has been helping “plant” the flags for a number of years, Carpluk said. Other residents also help out.

The installation of the flags takes about two days, Carpluk said, and has become a tradition on the North Fork. Passersby beep their approval as they drive by, she said, and veterans often come by to help and to give the volunteers a hug.